Zack Kassian Leapfrogs Cody Hodgson in Young Player Rankings
Thomas Drance
October 29 2012 11:50AM
Tanev and Kassian celebrate their bright future.
Photo credit: Gerry Kahrmann, Vancouver Sun.
Since the Canucks traded Cody Hodgson (and Alexander Sulzer) for Zack Kassian (and Marc-Andre Gragnani), friend of the blog and ESPN and Hockey Prospectus prospect guru Corey Pronman has consistently stated that Buffalo "recieved the best player in the deal." That is until today, when he released his top-50 rankings for players under the age of 23. On that list (which, features two Canucks skaters in Zack Kassian and Chris Tanev) Zack Kassian has leapfrogged Cody Hodgson, who only appeared as an honorable mention.
Read on past the jump.
Cory Schneider Talks Playing in Europe, and Getting Frustrated with "Gary" on Toucher and Rich
Thomas Drance
October 25 2012 11:33AM
Photo Credit: Danny Moloshok, REUTERS
Cory Schneider has made eloquence a habit, and when he appears on Toucher and Rich - a Boston area Drive-Time Sports Radio Program - the results have historically been particularly entertaining. He was on their show again on Thursday morning, and unsurprisinngly he made some cogent points about the collective bargaining negotiations between the NHL and the NHLPA, the prospect of playing in Europe and getting fat during the lockout.
Read past the jump for more.
Headshots: October 22nd
Thomas Drance
October 22 2012 03:41PM
Zack Kassian impressed in Abbotsford this past weekend.
Headshots are a Canucks Army feature where we link to the day's freshest news, and other assorted Canucks web-goodies. If you've written a blogpost, produced a tribute video, birthed a clever .gif into existence, or have a hockey related cause you'd like to see promoted in this space - please e-mail Thom at thom.drance@gmail.com.
Strombabble: Could the NHL's Proposed Back-Diving Deals Provision Actually Benefit the Canucks in a Luongo Trade?
Thomas Drance
October 22 2012 12:51PM
I like to imagine that Luongo is looking at me scornfully, and thinking...
"Really man, you're going to write another speculative post about my trade status?"
Last week, while writing about the NHL's proposed penalty on teams who signed star players to cap-circumventing "back-diving contracts", I wrote that the so called "Kovy Klause" would "hardly impact the arithmetic of a potential Luongo trade" for the Canucks.
Maybe I didn't go far enough in that analysis because in the return of Elliotte Friedman's Thirty Thoughts column on Monday, the Hockey Night in Canada reporter took this logic one step further. Is it possible that, in fact, Mike Gillis and the Canucks could benefit from the insertion of the punitive clause in the next NHL collective bargaining agreement (CBA)?
Read on past the jump.
Strombabble: Do the Recent Luongo Rumours Tell us Anything about Vancouver's Asking Price?
Thomas Drance
October 19 2012 11:38AM
Photo Credit: (Dave Sandford/Getty Images)
There should be bigger fish to fry at this point in the NHL lockout, but for whatever shameless reason "Luongo to Toronto" rumours are the hot topic of today. Before we get started, let's remember that Mike Gillis can't chat with Roberto Luongo - who has the right to approve any trade he's involved in - during the lockout. As such this is a purely hypothetical exercise, as are the rumours being bandied about.
For a variety of reasons, Toronto has always made the most sense as a "Luongo destination," and I'm very dubious of the notion that these latest "reports" tell us anything new. But let's track down some scuttlebutt and engage in some skeptical analysis anyway. Read on past the jump.
